Don't Call Me King
by Lucathia Rykatu
Summary: "Don't call me that." "Why not? King sounds so much cooler than getting called the strongest decoy!" A short Kageyama character study.


Don't Call Me King

by Lucathia

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Haikyuu! and make no profit from writing this.

**Notes:** For 31_days on livejournal's May 1st theme, _ignoring all the voices from my wall_. Written with only knowledge of canon up to chapter 58, as that was how many chapters were out when this was written.

* * *

At first, it was just a normal nickname. _He's like a king,_ they would say while watching him. _The king of the upper court! Look at where he sent that ball! The court is entirely under his command!_

"Hey, they've named you the king," a teammate would say jokingly. Kageyama would brush it off without responding to his teammate's jest. Volleyball was all that mattered. What other people wanted to call him mattered little.

However, he couldn't deny that he'd felt somewhat proud that he'd drawn as much attention as he had. If only Oikawa-san could see how much he'd improved! He was no longer "the younger setter." Like how any other middle school student might react when given a nickname like "the king," Kageyama started holding his head high. He was now the foundation that held the team together, the king who paved the way for his subjects.

He would definitely lead the team to victory.

* * *

Despite the initial prestige of the nickname, the meaning behind it changed all too quickly. He soon grew to dislike hearing even a whisper of the name.

There! He set the ball, sending it flying behind him in the blink of an eye. The blockers would not be able to react; it would be their point—

Why? Why was no one going for the ball with everything he had?

"Damn it!" he shouted. "Move faster!"

You could have gotten it! I know you could have reached that!

He didn't stop trying. The opponents were strong, but this assist would put them one step closer to victory. He had practiced and practiced until he could do this back set—The ball soared over his head, flying towards the spot that would gain them the point. It was at the perfect angle and height for spiking—

He spun around, ready to see his teammate's hand send the ball grinding into their opponents' court—

No one was there.

_Why?_

Why wasn't anyone there?

Why wasn't anyone putting in more effort? Why didn't they want the win?

"Kageyama, we can't reach that."

No, I know you can! You just have to try! You just have to want the win! Why are you giving up?

"Jump higher! Keep your eyes on the ball!" he yelled furiously.

You can do it as long as you want it to happen!

The audience's response changed. _He's a king alright, a tyrant who doesn't take those below him into consideration. He only knows how to order them around. _

That mattered little. Kageyama didn't care what those in the bleachers thought. This had only ever been for the team.

Once more, he put his all in his assist. Once more, there was no one who connected.

The ball dropped to the ground.

No one had answered the king's desire for victory.

"You're definitely a king. You're a king who orders his subjects around. Do you even care about the rest of us?"

Kageyama let those words wash over him.

He hadn't cared about what their spectators thought of him.

This was different.

He was alone. Even though they stood on the same side of the net, he was alone. He'd thought them to be working towards the same goal, but they had always thought him to be the king. The tyrant. Never a teammate.

King? You expect me to be happy with such a name? Stop joking.

He never wanted to be called that again, to turn around and discover that no one had his back, that no one cared about volleyball the way he did.

Don't call me king.

* * *

"Wow, no wonder you're called the king."

When he joined Karasuno, things started changing. He had upperclassmen who didn't hesitate to call him out on his behavior and peers who butted heads with him every step of the way.

One of them was Hinata.

"Don't call me that," Kageyama gritted out.

"Why not? King sounds so much cooler than getting called the strongest decoy!"

No, it's not. You're accepted as the decoy. That means you're part of the team. Essential. You create opportunities for the other attackers to score. You're not "the king" who the team doesn't want around, who doesn't know how to get along with the others outside of commanding them.

"I hate it."

He turned and ignored the rest of Hinata's protests.

Still, Hinata never gave up, not in this and certainly not in volleyball.

Each time Kageyama sent the ball soaring, Hinata would leap after it. It didn't matter where he sent it. Hinata never gave up. He never thought it impossible to reach the ball. Kageyama watched as Hinata missed, as he faulted, as he fell right into the net...

The thing that amazed Kageyama the most was the look in Hinata's eyes—full of relentless passion. But he still wasn't moving quickly enough. He could do better than that!

_That's the same as you acted in junior high. Look at him. Hinata has the skill, but it's not refined. You're a setter. You have to help him out._

Kageyama didn't really understand what Sugawara meant by that, but he stilled. He gave Hinata a thorough look.

Maybe he could do this.

"At your fastest speed, perform your highest jump, and I will get the ball to you!"

It was different from all the assists he had ever done. He _saw_ Hinata. He calculated what Hinata would be capable of. He adjusted his assist so that it would fit Hinata instead of asking Hinata to accommodate him.

He didn't actually _think _Hinata would trust him so much that he'd even close his eyes while hitting the ball Kageyama sent him.

Was he stupid or what? How could he trust him that much?

It didn't stop there.

"Send it over!" "Give it here!" "Bring it on!"

Hinata would jump, and Kageyama would assist. With his new team, he got to try out all sorts of high difficulty tosses. He would send the ball behind him, and he'd know that Hinata would be there, flying into the air as if he had a pair of wings.

Was this all it took for his ambitions to be answered?

"You little rascal! That was awesome!" No one in junior high had dared to treat him this way, but Tanaka would even pound him on his back and ruffle his hair.

He had teammates. Peers. Upperclassmen. He wasn't alone anymore. His team was one who wouldn't cut him any slack and who wouldn't give up either. If he was being arrogant, they took him down a peg or two. If he was being hotheaded, Sugawara would put him on the right track with his easygoing nature and steadfastness. If he was being ridiculous, Hinata would be the first to laugh at him. They would chase after the ball with him, doing their utmost to keep the ball in play, to put it away and snatch the point.

They wanted victory just as much as he did.

"We're all on the same side here. On this side of the net, we work together!"

There Hinata was, hastening to help their upperclassmen put away their equipment for the day. Kageyama hurriedly finished his part, overtaking Hinata. "My win!" he declared once he finished.

"Hey, no fair!" Hinata protested.

Perhaps even a king could find a place to belong.

* * *

the end

Thanks for reading!


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